U2: THE JOSHUA TREE

Believe it or not, U2's "THE JOSHUA TREE" was released to the world 20 years ago this month. I've listened to THE JOSHUA TREE at least 1000 times. The album was #26 on Rolling Stone's all time greatest album list. The 25 albums before it are all rated 1 spot to high. THE JOSHUA TREE is the best album of all time. When was the last time you listened to it?

TOP TEN FILMS OF 2006

2006 was not a good year for movies. At post time I've viewed 83 movies released in 2006. The average score of those movies is a pathetic 4.9. 2006 is also the first year since 2003 that I didn't reward a perfect 10 to a movie.

Without further ado, I give you...

THE TOP TEN FILMS OF 2006

1. THE DEPARTED, Oscar gets it right...AGAIN! For the second year in a row the voting members of the Oscar Academy took my advice and awarded the Oscar for best film to my favorite film of the year. To see more details on this film check out my post from early November 06. One small note...Matt Damon, not Jack or Leo, gives the best performance in THE DEPARTED.

2. APOCALYPTO, By a Nose. Apocalypto is a great film. I pondered endlessly...THE DEPARTED? or APOCALYPTO for best film of the year. You know the answer to that question, however, please see this film. For more on APOCALYPTO, check out my post from last month.

3. LITTLE CHILDREN , see my post dates 5/31/2007

4. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 3, Seriously. I can not tell a lie, I loved Mission: Impossible 3. This franchise is interesting. Each addition to the series is better than the film that it follows. Tom Cruise is perfect as Ethan Hunt. Unfortunately, we probably won't see Cruise in the role again because the box office numbers weren't there...nearly 200 million...gee, Hollywood sure is fickle. Phillip Seymor Hoffman is very memorable as the nasty villain. I'm thinking of doing my own version of the Oscars next year. If I did it this year Hoffman would be nominated for best supporting actor. Mission: Impossible 3 is the best action and 3rd best film of the year.

5. NOTES ON A SCANDAL...see a short review on the post dated August 21, 2007.

6. ROCKY BALBOA, Knocked Out! Check out my post from December for more info on the most surprising great movie of 2006. BALBOA is the 6th film in the Rocky franchise. Other than using the word "surprised", I don't know another word to describe the fact that the 6th film in the Rocky franchise made me tear up 3 different times.

7. THE PRESTAGE, One of 2 Magician themed films of 2006. The Prestage was the smartest film of 2006. However, I don't think many people understood the ending. I say this because I've asked several people who have seen the film if they liked the ending. Most say no. When I explain to them my thoughts on the ending I find that they missed a key aspect of the finished product. I won't disclose the ending here. I will say this though...My lovely wife missed the secret of the ending also. See this movie and let me know what you think.

8. LETTERS FROM IWO JIMO...see short review on post dated August 21, 2007.

9. BORAT, Very Nice. I laughed, I cried, and then laughed again. BORAT, the funniest movie of the year, was smart and original. I've never covered my eyes in a comedy before seeing BORAT. In BORAT I covered my eyes more than a few times in horror at what I was laughing at.

10. SHERRYBABY, Top 9. This Top Ten list was almost a Top 9 list. Until watching SHERRYBABY last week my list was one short. Like I said before, 2006 was not a good movie year. SHERRYBABY stars Maggie Gyllenhaal as a woman just released from prison after serving time for breaking several drug laws. She is attempted to get her life back together which includes getting back into her daughters life. Gyllenhaal is great and deserved to get an Oscar nomination.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

CHILDREN OF MEN, A Bleak Future. What I liked most about CHILDREN OF MEN was that it was very fare in its depiction of the not so distant future. Usually movies like this show the government as a reason for societies breakdown; the government can never be trusted. CHILDREN OF MEN is different. Yes, the government is not perfect, but the liberal groups that are fighting the government can't be trusted either. CHILDREN OF MEN tells the story of a generation without hope...and children. Wow! Sounds like a dream world. However, we all know without children, Humankind ceases to exist. However, there is hope. A young black woman becomes impregnated. The fight is on to control the woman as a propaganda tool. Check out this film that was released at the end of the year and was ignored by audiences and the Oscar Academy.


THE LAKE HOUSE, Actually...I'm a Softy. My wife tells me often that I have no heart. How can someone without a heart have a movie like THE LAKE HOUSE on his Top Ten list? When I'm asked what my favorite genre of movies is I always reply with..."Good ones!" THE LAKE HOUSE is a chick flick and proof that chick flicks can be smart and well made.

MONSTER HOUSE, Cars Who? Most critics thought CARS and HAPPY FEET were the best animated films of the year. They were wrong. MONSTER HOUSE is funny and reminded me of being a kid. Some people are scary, but sometimes the houses they live in are scarier. Maggie Gyllenhaal, of SHERRYBABY, voices the baby-sitter. Gyllenhaal is the only actor to be featured in two movies on this list.

PAN'S LABYRINTH...see short review on post dated August 21, 2007.

THE GOOD SHEPARD...see short review on post dated August 21, 2007

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS...see short review on post dated August 21, 2007

THE TEN WORST OF 2006

In a resent post I noted theater movies are far more creative, have better screen-plays, and features better acting performances than television. After I wrote that I started to retract my thinking.

Over the past 4 years my trips to the theater have decreased 10-15 times each year. The reasons for this are numerous. The main reason is I hate actors. The more they open their mouths about politics and the sham that is global-warming the more I despise them and their work. If I dislike an actor...why would I go to their films? Like I've said before..."Just entertain me and entertain me often." The second reason is that my love affair with my bicycle has grown leaps and bounds over the past 5 years. I'd much rather spend a sunny afternoon on my bicycle than viewing actors that I dislike.

...A third reason presenting itself in 2006...There are some excellent television shows. The C.S.I franchise provides original story-lines and great acting each week...and with all of the re-runs on 'Spike" and "A&E" one could watch a C.S.I episode everyday of the week.

Another great show is WITHOUT A TRACE. Again, original screenplays and superior acting make it must see t.v. And lets not forget American Idol. Last year was my rookie season as a viewer of the most popular program on television. I was shocked at how easy it was to get sucked into caring for the performers. This year, its lacking an emotional energy...but I've still only missed a few episodes.

All of this television viewing contributes to the decline in my trips to the theater.

The television shows above can be watched for free each week. The movies below I invested drive time the price of a movie ticket. After watching these disasters I felt used and betrayed. What is happening to my favorite medium of entertainment?

THE TOP TEN WORST MOVIES OF 2006

1. THE BLACK DAHLIA: WTF? This movie was a complete mess and is not only the worst movie of 2006 but also the most disappointing movie of 2006. THE BLACK DAHLIA (TBD)was an event movie for me....One that I placed its release date on my calender months beforehand. TBD is based on the true life murder of a two-bit actress that was found slain with some of her organs removed. Her body was found cut in half in a field in Los Angeles. Her murderer was never found. TBD, directed by Brian De Palma, presents a theory of the why and who murdered the young wanna-be actress. The film is difficult to follow and I couldn't wait for the end. The film featured a good cast. Josh Hartnett and Aaron Eckhart were good as the cops looking for the killer and Scarlett Johannon id always good to look at. However, the worst casting of the year also goes to TBD. Hilary Swank plays a sex-pot nympho. The part is awkward and difficult to watch. Skip this movie!

2. FIREWALL: Weak Bad Guys. Firewall was released in February of 2006. I thought for sure it would be the worst film of the year. Although the above movie proved me wrong, FIREWALL isn't much better. Thank God Harrison Ford is making another Indiana Jones flick. He needs a box office hit. The bad guys in FIREWALL kidnap the wife and two children of Ford, whose character is head of security of a large bank. To ensure the safety of his family he is forced to help the bad guys rob the bank. The bad guys are weak. I've never seen a film where the bad guys make so many threats that they never cash in on. In the film they keep yelling at the family dog to stop barking. They do this while holding guns that could easily win the war in Iraq. Why not kill the dog? The main bad guy is played by Paul Bettany...a great choice to play a bad guy. He was wasted in this crap-fest. For the record...Harrison Ford is looking very old.

3. STAY ALIVE: Remember? I dought if you can remember this film from March of 2006. Nerdy "gamers" discover a video game that when you "die" in the game, you "die in real life. If only the screen-writer would have died in a hideous car accident on his way to delivering his script to the big-wigs at the movie studio.

4. THE WICKER MAN: The Hardest Working Man in Show-Business is at it Again. Nicholas Cage plays a policeman who travels to a remote island of the coast of Washington to help find the daughter of his ex-girlfriend. His ex belongs to a cult. The film is unintentionally hilarious. The cult acts and dresses like those idiots at any Renaissance Fair we've all attended. The ending is very predictable.

5. THE BENCH-WARMERS: Sandler's Rejects. Adult nerds take on a team of little leaguers. The Bench-Warmers features the usual "Sandler Rejects", Rob Schneider and David Spade who are usually in bit-parts in Adam Sandler films. Billed as a comedy, BW supplies ZERO laughs.

6. THE MARINE: Stick with Wrestling. The Marine stars John Cena who when not providing horrible acting performances in movies like The Marine...provides horrible acting skills as a professional wrestler. A no-name wrestler in an action flick?...Maybe this should have been the 3rd worst movie of the year.

7. NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: Boring...Like Most Museums. Has a movie that banked nearly 300 million at the box office been this bad? NO!

8. BASIC INSTINCT 2: Pay-Day. Sharon Stone received big bucks for starring and appearing naked in the 8th worst film of the year. Although it was somewhat fun watching the actors muddle through the awful script, it wasn't worth the time and effort. Several people walked out of the theater when I went to see it.

9. SLITHER: Let's Go to Camp. I love campy films that don't apologize for having a "B" quality. However, campy movies only work if the screenplay is smart and somewhat funny. Slither was more concerned with "grossing out" the audience. The film didn't even do that well.

10. PULSE: Life on Marrs. Kristen Bell did not have a good year. Not only did PULSE bomb big-time at the box office, her semi-successful television show "Veronica Marrs" received awful reviews and over-all viewer ship went down. Obliviously they didn't want to see Ms. Bell on the big screen either.

Dis-Honorable Mentions

Underworld 2: Evolution...Enough with the cool vampire flicks.
School For Scoundrels...Jon Heder also starred in The Bench-Warmers. Heder is 0 for 2 for 06.
Turistas...See post from a couple months ago.
A Scanner Darkly...Creative?...Yes. Boring?...Definitely!
Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny...Very disappointing for a Jack Black movie.
Nacho Libre...Like Heder, Black was 0for 2 in 06.
Let's Go To Prison...funny concept, poorly done.